


Angry

by fallenangel218



Category: NCIS
Genre: Angst, Drama, Gen, Hurt/Comfort
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-11-16
Updated: 2015-11-25
Packaged: 2018-05-02 00:01:18
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,886
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5226164
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/fallenangel218/pseuds/fallenangel218
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Tim and Tony's rivalry comes to blows after a disastrous field assignment, and Gibbs faces the possible break up of his team.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Notes: Written in 2012 for the NFA "And Then..." Challenge. The objective was to take one of the quotes provided from a classic novel, and use it as a springboard for an NCIS fic.
> 
> **I have made some major edits to the original story (posted on ff.net) as I bring it over to AO3. This fic created a lot of differing opinions on the original postings. The characters may be OOC - but please, don't take it the wrong way. The characters' thoughts, actions and/or feelings do not reflect my own.

 

_ Nobody was really surprised when it happened, not really, not on the subconscious level where savage things grow.   
  
"Carrie," Stephen King _

_** Chapter 1 ** _

The elevator doors opened, and Tim pushed past Tony and made his way into the bullpen. He was covered in dirt and bruises, and his suit was filthy. All they were assigned to do was pick up a suspect. It shouldn't have been that hard, but it turned out to be a disaster. The suspect got away, and Tim and Tony blamed each other, and had argued the entire way back to Headquarters.   


Tim plopped down at his desk and started the report. Gibbs would want to know everything that had happened. As he began, Tony stormed over to his desk.   


"What's the deal,  Probie ? You've been shooting me attitude all afternoon!"   


Tim ignored Tony and kept typing. If there was one thing Tim had become a pro at, it was ignoring Tony when he berated him.   


"Don't think I don't know your strategy, Probie. You're not getting rid of me by ignoring me. So what the hell is your problem?"   


Tim had misspelled the word  _ suspect  _ for the sixth time. Tony was becoming very distracting.   


"Well? I'm waiting!"   


He misspelled it again, and lost his patience. He flew out of his seat and grabbed Tony by the collar.   


"You want to know why I'm upset, Tony? Maybe it's because you poked fun at me the whole drive to the suspect's house. Maybe it was that you made me chase him through the woods, and maybe it's because I fell into a ravine and nearly broke my neck, and all you could do was laugh. That's all you  ever  do, Tony. You  never  ask if I'm all right, and you  never  help me up. You just laugh and walk away. But that's just how you are, isn't it?"   


He pushed a shocked Tony away from him and started to sit down again. Tony's shock instantly turned into anger, and he reached out and grabbed Tim's arm, pulling him back up.   


"Listen, Probie, I have  always  had your six.  _Always_.  Don't you stand there and tell me that I haven't. It's the furthest thing from the truth."   


"Like you had it today when I fell down that hill, and the suspect escaped? Yeah, Tony -  way  to have my six on that one." He tried to shove Tony off his arm, but Tony's grip was solid. "Let me go, Tony."   


"No way. I'm not done talking yet."   


"I am. Let me go, now."   


"Not a chance."   


McGee's rage was boiling over at this point, and he could no longer control it. He leapt over the desk and threw a punch to Tony's face, hard enough to bring the Senior Agent to his knees.   


"I told you to let go!" Tim shouted, grabbing Tony by the shirt, and rearing back to punch him again. "I'm sick of you, Tony!"   


"McGee! Stand down!"   


Gibbs' voice boomed over both of them. He'd seen DiNozzo go down as he stepped from the elevator. He saw the look in McGee's eyes. It was one of pure hatred and anger. When Tim didn't let his partner go, Gibbs took it upon himself to intervene. He latched onto McGee from behind and pulled him back.   


"Let me go, Boss!" McGee shouted, with a rage no one had ever seen from him before. "I'm not done with him yet!"   


"You're done, McGee! Stand down, now!"   


McGee began to calm down as Gibbs held him back. Tony got up, wiping blood from his mouth.   


"Boss - "   


"DiNozzo, I want you at your desk, and do not move until further notice."   


"Right, Boss."   


"McGee, you and I are going to chat in Conference Room 1." He stalked toward the conference rooms, practically dragging McGee by his arm. He practically shoved his youngest agent into the room and closed and locked the door behind him.   


"Sit," he ordered. McGee reluctantly did so. "Do you want to tell me what the hell happened out there, McGee?"   


"Not really."    


Gibbs head slapped him, hard.   


"The next thing out of your mouth had better be why you hit DiNozzo... and don't lie to me."   


"We lost the suspect today, because  _ Tony  _ didn't have my six when I was chasing the guy through the woods!"   


"What do you mean?" Gibbs asked, interested.   


"Hayes knew we were coming. He shot at me with a rifle and took off into the woods behind his house. I ran ahead of Tony to try and catch him. I'm not sure how far into the woods I ran, but I lost him when I got tripped up and fell down into a ravine. I couldn't move for a good fifteen minutes. I thought Tony was right behind me, but he wasn't. I woke up alone in the woods, and the suspect got away. I have no idea where he went."   


Gibbs remained silent for a few moments. Tim was afraid Gibbs wouldn't believe his story. He was going to get suspended for sure, or fired.   


"Where was DiNozzo when you got yourself out of the woods?"   


"I found him at the edge of the woods, waiting with his gun drawn. He didn't even try to help, Boss. I could have died out there, and he wouldn't have known."   


Gibbs fell silent again. Tim took a deep breath and leaned his elbows on the conference table. He was finally starting to come down from his rush of anger, and his body was shaking.   


"Boss—I know I shouldn't have hit him, but I was just so angry—I-I don't know what came over me-"   


Gibbs grabbed him by the shirt, cutting off his stammering speech.   


"What I saw out there, McGee, was  not  just an argument. You were ready to kill him. I can't overlook that."   


"I know." Tim dropped his head. "I deserve to be fired."    


"You're an excellent agent, McGee, and you're lucky I like you."   


Tim raised his head to lock eyes with Gibbs.   


"I'm not fired?"   


"Not today, McGee." Tim sighed and started to stand, but a glare from Gibbs brought him back to his seat. "Was I finished?"   


"No, Sir."   


"Then sit down."   


"Yes, Sir."   


"I'm not firing you, but I  am  suspending you. One week, without pay."   


Tim nodded slowly in understanding. He took his badge from his pocket and set it on the table with his gun.   


"You are to report to your desk when we're done, gather your things and go home. I don't want to see you until next week. Understood?"   


"Yes, Boss."   


"Good. You're dismissed."   


Tim silently got up and left the conference room. Gibbs followed, carrying Tim's gun and badge, which he deposited into his desk drawer. He watched Tim gather his thing and leave the bullpen quickly. He turned to DiNozzo, who was quietly typing a report.

"DiNozzo!"   


"Yeah, Boss."   


"With me. You're seeing Ducky."

"I'm fi-"   


"You're not fine, let's go. Now."   


Tony got up and followed Gibbs to the elevator. Gibbs pulled the stop immediately after the doors closed.   


"You want to tell me about what happened today?"   


"About how McClumsy lost our suspect today?"   


"How about how you let him run into the woods alone."   


"He was fine, Boss. He didn't need me."

Gibbs pushed his Senior agent into the wall and held him there.

"You  _ always  _ have your partner's six. I don't care how competent McGee is. You let him go into a dangerous situation alone, and he could have been killed! You pull this crap again and I'll take your badge. Understood?"   


"Yes, Boss."   


"Good." He let Tony go and started the elevator. "When you're finished with Ducky, get your ass back upstairs. You're on desk duty until further notice."   


"But Boss-"   


"Are you really going to argue, DiNozzo?"   


"No, Boss."   


The elevator opened at Autopsy. DiNozzo stepped out without another word, and Gibbs let the doors closed. He had a real problem on his hands. McGee and DiNozzo always razzed each other, but he'd never seen Tim blow up like that. The kid must have had a lot of pent up rage. He'd just chosen the wrong way to let it out. His ringing cell phone brought him away from his thoughts. It was Jenny. He knew he couldn't keep this incident from her.   


"Yeah, Gibbs."   


"I want to see you in my office, Agent Gibbs.  _Now_. "   


"On my way," he said, closing the phone. He was going to have a lot of explaining to do if he was going to keep his team together.

** TBC... **

****   



	2. Chapter 2

  
"Jethro, you're being one-sided on this," Jenny said after Gibbs explained what had happened between McGee and DiNozzo. "You can't suspend Agent McGee, and just let Agent DiNozzo off with a slap on the wrist! He's as much at fault for what happened downstairs as Agent McGee was."   
  
Jethro stood stoically, eyeing Jenny.   
  
"McGee hit a co-worker. That isn't excusable."   
  
"And according to you, Agent Gibbs, the fact that Agent DiNozzo abandoned his partner while chasing a suspect is something you can just throw over your shoulder? From what you've told me, Agent McGee fell into a ravine and was injured. You're going to stand there and tell me that Agent McGee deserved the suspension, but Agent DiNozzo does not?"   
  
Gibbs' silence was all Jenny needed to know.   
  
"Tell Agent DiNozzo I'd like to see him, Agent Gibbs."   
  
Gibbs turned on his heel and left. He knew better than to argue with Jenny Shepard. He wouldn't win. He walked out onto the balcony and looked down at the squad room. Tony was typing a report, and Ziva was on the phone.   
  
"DiNozzo!" he shouted. Tony stopped and looked up. "Get up here, now."   
  
Tony silently got up from his desk and met Gibbs at the top of the stairs. Gibbs led him into Director Shepard's office.   
  
"Have a seat, Agent DiNozzo," the Director said.   
  
"Yes ma'am," he said, sitting in the chair across from her.   
  
"I'd like to hear about what happened downstairs between you and Agent McGee."   
  
If Tony could make himself invisible, he'd have loved to do it right then.   
  
"We'd just gotten back from trying to bring in a suspect. Tim was upset that we didn't catch him. I—I guess I was a little upset at Tim, and I lashed out at him for his attitude."   
  
"So you instigated the altercation?"   
  
Tony briefly lowered his eyes, then brought them back up to the Director.   
  
"Yes ma'am, I guess I did."   
  
"Agent DiNozzo, tell me about your assignment in the field with Agent McGee."   
  
"We went to pick up Corporal Hayes on a murder charge. When we got there, he shot at Tim with a rifle, and knocked me down. He ran across the yard toward the woods. Before I could get up, Tim was halfway across the yard."   
  
He paused and glanced at Gibbs, who was glaring at him.   
  
"I did run after Tim, but I stopped at the edge of the woods. I wasn't sure which way they went."   
  
"So you waited there for Agent McGee, rather than go into the woods and try to find him?" Jenny questioned.   
  
Tony dropped his head.   
  
"Yeah. It was pretty stupid of me not to go in after him, Director. I had no idea he'd fall down that hill."   
  
"The fact here, Agent DiNozzo, is that you did not provide proper backup to your partner, and it resulted in his injury. He could have been in grave peril, but instead, you chose to wait it out. And when you came back to NCIS, you proceeded to berate Agent McGee for his attitude toward you. This is inexcusable behavior. Effective immediately, you are on suspension for one week. Following your suspension, you will report to FLETC for retraining."   
  
"FLETC? But Director..."   
  
"You don't get to argue this, Agent DiNozzo. You are very lucky I did not fire your over this incident. You will complete one week of training at FLETC before returning to active duty. Am I understood, Agent DiNozzo?"   
  
"Yes, Ma'am."   
  
"Good. I hope this will be a learning experience for both you and Agent McGee. You are dismissed."   
  
Tony handed Gibbs his gun and badge, and left the Director's office without protest. Gibbs looked down at the items in his possession.   
  
"Agent Gibbs, I am going to assign Agent McGee to FLETC as well. Please make sure he is made aware. Additionally, I'm taking this case away from you, and handing it over to Agent Balboa's team. You and Agent David are assigned to cold cases until Agents DiNozzo and McGee return."   
  
"You can't do that, Jenny," Jethro pleaded.   
  
"I just did. Your assignment is to keep your team intact, or I WILL separate you, _permanently._  Dismissed, Agent Gibbs."   
  
Jethro left the office in a huff and returned to his desk. In the matter of an hour, half of his team was on suspension, and he'd lost his case to Agent Balboa. This rivalry between Tony and Tim needed to be resolved, before they ended up killing each other.   
  
**NCISNCISNCISNCISNCIS**   
  
  
Tim drove himself to the ER before he went home, to make sure his injuries weren't more severe than he thought. He turned out to have a slight concussion, and his bumps and bruises were minor. He was very lucky it wasn't too steep a hill that he'd fallen down.   
  
When he finally arrived home, Tim was exhausted. It was only seven o'clock, but all he wanted to do was lie down. Taking a couple of ibuprofen, Tim changed into sweats and crawled into bed. If he could spend all of his time in bed, he wouldn't mind it at all.   
  
  
_One Week Later..._   
  
  
Tim was surprised to not see Tony at his desk when he came back to work. He was relieved in a way. He wasn't sure he was ready to talk to Tony just yet.   
  
As he set down his gear, Gibbs came into the squad room through the opposite elevator, holding a cup of coffee.   
  
"Good morning, McGee," he said as he sat at his desk.   
  
"Good Morning Boss," he said, powering on his computer.   
  
_This isn't awkward at all. Not in the slightest._   
  
"McGee," Gibbs said suddenly as he put down his desk phone. "The Director would like to see you in her office."   
  
"Yes, Boss."   
  
Tim made his way to Director Shepard's office. Her secretary nodded his admittance, and he politely knocked on her door.   
  
"Come in, Agent McGee."   
  
Tim shyly entered the Director's office and closed the door behind him.   
  
"Have a seat."   
  
He meekly sat down.   
  
"I want to discuss what happened between you and Agent DiNozzo last Wednesday afternoon."   
  
"Yes, Ma'am."   
  
"Can you explain what happened?"   
  
Tim started to relay the story of how they'd gone to pick up Corporal Hayes for questioning, and how he'd run into the woods.   
  
"When I chased him into the woods, I thought Tony would have been right behind me. I didn't realize he wasn't until I tripped and fell. Thankfully the hill wasn't that steep or high. It could have been a lot worse—"   
  
"Agent McGee, I'm more concerned about what happened when you got back to the squad room."   
  
"Oh, sorry ma'am. Tony was still getting on my nerves when we got back. He demanded some sort of attitude adjustment from me. I was frustrated because he'd distracted me from writing my report for Agent Gibbs. I—I overreacted and grabbed him by the collar and yelled at him. After that I tried to sit back down, but Tony had a hold of my arm, and he said he wasn't letting go until we talked about what happened. From there, rage took over, and I punched him."   
  
"Do you think Agent Gibbs was right to suspend you?"   
  
"Yes, Ma'am I do. I deserved it. My behavior was unacceptable."   
  
"I'm going to extend your Suspension for another week. You have been made aware of my recommendation that you return to FLETC for re-training?"   
  
"Yes ma'am."   
  
"Good. You and Agent DiNozzo are scheduled to be there for one week, starting next Monday. After you have completed your re-training, and I have the completed paperwork from your instructors, you both will be allowed to return to your duties."   
  
"Yes, Ma'am."   
  
Jenny's features softened a bit, and she smiled.   
  
"I like you, Tim, and I like Tony, but Gibbs isn't the only one who's noticed the tension between the two of you. I want you both to take this week at FLETC and clear the air. I don't want to have to have any more conversations like this again. Are we clear?"   
  
"Yes, Ma'am."   
  
"You are dismissed."   
  
Tim got up and went back downstairs. Gibbs was at his desk, smacking his computer.   
  
"Whoa, Boss! Let me fix that for you!" Tim said. Gibbs got up from his seat and let his Junior Agent work his magic. "I'm not sure how this keeps happening to your e-mail, Boss. There, it's fixed. Don't delete these things anymore," he instructed, pointing to an item on his e-mail program.   
  
"Thanks, McGee."   
  
"No problem, Boss. See you in a couple of weeks."   
  
Gibbs nodded, and Tim went back to his desk and gathered a few things before he left the office.   
  
**TBC...**


End file.
